


A Dozen and One

by dearmini



Category: Cravity
Genre: Alternate Universe - Flower Shop, Cravity - Freeform, Florists, Fluff, Language of Flowers, M/M, Strangers to Lovers, i still don't know how to tag properly lmao, seriwoo - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-11
Updated: 2020-04-11
Packaged: 2021-03-02 03:02:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,085
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23588098
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dearmini/pseuds/dearmini
Summary: where woobin is a florist who has zero knowledge about flowers and their meanings, but despite being clueless, he thinks nothing can be more beautiful than the flowers that surround him everyday... until he meets serim.
Relationships: Park Serim/Seo Woobin
Comments: 2
Kudos: 55





	A Dozen and One

**Author's Note:**

> i don't know if i wrote this well, but i hope you like it! i need more seriwoo fics uwu  
> scream for cravity on twt with me @_dearmini & let's be friends!

Woobin doesn’t know anything about flowers and their meanings, but he’s sure of one thing: flowers, no matter which color—a light shade or a vibrant one—he thinks they’re beautiful. So, when his good friends Allen and Jungmo asked him to help them managing their flower shop, he was nothing but hesitant.

It was Saturday afternoon when he got a text from Allen asking to meet up at their favourite coffee shop Coffee Drip. It was their frequent hang out place after classes and now that they have graduated, they still kept the tradition going.

“It’s okay! You don’t even have to know anything about flowers! You’ll man the cash register, that’s it. Didn’t you study business or something?” Jungmo tries to convince him when they met up for coffee one day.

“I studied Economics, Jungmo,” he corrects.

“Big difference!” Jungmo exclaims, “It’s basically the same thing. You’re good at Math, so come on!” he added, complaining.

“Come on, Woobin. You only need to take calls and man the register. Jungmo can take care of customer service,” Allen explains things better, and he’s a lot calmer, Woobin thinks.

Woobin sets his drink down on the table before speaking, “Hyung, you do realize I don’t know anything about flowers, right?”

The older nods, “I know. You don’t have to know anything about flowers right away. The flower containers are also labeled! Besides, Wonjin and I can do the flower arrangements and other complicated stuff. We just really need someone to manage orders.”

Woobin knows Allen can be a bit shy especially when he needs to talk to new people. With a sigh of defeat, he finally agrees, “Alright, fine. But! The minute you make step out of the register, I’m quitting.”

Spring Star—Allen’s grandma used to own the shop, but when she fell ill, she asked for Allen to take over. Allen loves flowers. He and his cousin Wonjin does, so when he asked the younger for help, Wonjin happily accepted.

They renovated the place to give it a fresh vibe and little by little, the shop’s popularity grew. That’s when Jungmo came to help. His degree in Communication Studies definitely helped.

With their rising popularity and the steady increase of customers, Spring Star needed another hand to help Wonjin do flower arrangements. Jungmo was a customer service expert and while Allen was equally as great as Wonjin, he was too busy handling the register and taking calls for orders to be picked up or to be customized. This leaves Wonjin overwhelmed with numerous numbers of orders to prepare.

Then he remembers Woobin. Graduating with an Economics degree, there shouldn’t be anything hard managing finances. Right?

That’s why Woobin starts work on an early Monday morning. The shop opens at nine, but Allen asked him to come in at seven so they could give him a brief tour and train him a little bit.

He visited the flower shop once before it was renovated, so he was a little bit familiar with the place. Training him to operate the register isn’t too hard since he had his fair share of part-time job experiences throughout college.

Jungmo gives him a tour but, of course, he doesn’t understand anything. Too preoccupied with the beautiful assortments on flowers in different racks along with displays of pre-made flower bouquets.

At nine, Jungmo flips their sign indicating they’re open for business. Woobin helps him spray the flowers for a bit. It’s a slow morning and the first phone call to order for pick-up only comes thirty minutes later.

Woobin answers the phone and the guy on the phone says some flower names—Woobin has no idea what those look like besides rose and daisy, but he jots the names down nonetheless.

He hears the sound of their wind chime and walking in is the most beautiful young man he has ever seen. He had that kind of face that stops Woobin from whatever he’s focused on. The way the stranger’s natural expression is followed by a sweet smile as he greets Jungmo who welcomes him to their shop. His eyes a mesmerizing dark brown, thin lips tinted with a pinkish color, his nose tall and slender and his jaw curved prettily to hold his adorably small face.

“Hello? I asked how much would my total be? Hello?”

Woobin breaks from his trance. He clears his throat and mentally scolds himself for getting distracted before responding to the person on the other line, “Sorry about that, I was just… I was just checking something. Your total comes to 15,900won. Can I have a name for the order, please?”

Jungmo suddenly appears in front of him and hands out a piece of paper. Written on it was a description of a customized request of a flower arrangement.

“Aren’t you supposed to give this to Allen or to Wonjin?”

“I already did. That’s for our record.” Jungmo says, eyeing Woobin with a sly look.

“What?”

“Don’t think I didn’t see you stutter on while you were on the phone earlier.” Jungmo says, “Seriously? Getting distracted by a boy, are we?” he continues and points at the bottom if the paper.

SERIM. It was written in capital letters and circled.

“His name is Serim, don’t ogle too much or he might get weirded out by your staring. We don’t want to lose customers because of your weird face.”

Woobin tries to hit his friend but the other is quicker to back up. He laughs mockingly at him before turning back to welcome another customer.

Woobin shakes his head at his friend’s mischievousness. His eyes searches for Serim and sees the boy looking at a bouquet displayed on one of the racks. They were red and the kind of big. The petals fluttering out, looking like little fairy dresses. Serim smiles as he pokes the plant.

Behind the counter, several types of flowers are available for customers who want to buy a single flower. They were labeled so Woobin can serve those types of customers even if Allen or Wonjin are busy with arrangements.

Woobin spots the same flower Serim was looking at—Amaryllis. It was a vibrant red. Pretty like Serim. He takes one from the container and smiles as he thinks back to the image of Serim’s beautiful smile.

“Order for Serim!”

Wonjin emerges from the back door with a bouquet and gives it to Woobin. He takes it and walks back to the cash register where Serim was waiting.

“He’s even prettier up close.”

Serim’s face turned a slight shade of red and Woobin thinks it’s adorable.

“T-thank you, I guess.”

Shit. “Did I say that out loud? I-I’m so sorry.” Woobin says, a little bit embarrassed.

“No, no. That’s totally fine!” Serim dismisses, “That’s my order, right?”

“Yes.” Woobin replies, his pitch raising a little, “Um… your total comes to 15,900won. Would you like a card to go with that?”

“No, that’s okay. Thank you very much!” he pauses and looks at Woobin, “I didn’t order this one.” Serim says as he spots the single Amaryllis in a different wrapping.

“It’s on the house.” Woobin offers a small smile, “I saw you looking at our bouquet displays earlier and I just thought it’s as beautiful as your smile.”

Serim was visibly flustered and Woobin thinks he’s really, really, dangerously adorable. He gives Serim his change and the other thanks him before making exiting the store.

“Seriously?” Wonjin says peeking from the back door.

“It’s as beautiful as your smile? That was so lame.” Jungmo snorts when he sees his co-worker laughing to himself.

Woobin could care less about his friends. He was exhilarated.

“You didn’t even ask for his phone number, loser.”

And with that, Woobin’s happy demeanor fell.

The next time Woobin sees Serim is three days later. Jungmo is quite busy helping a few customers while Allen and Wonjin stayed at the back preparing customized orders.

“Hello!”

Serim approaches the register. He is wearing a plain white hoodie and dark washed jeans and Woobin thinks he looks so pure and innocent. Serim asks for half a dozen of white daisies and another half of white lilies.

“Jungmo looks quite busy, I hope you don’t mind?”

Woobin shakes his head, “No worries. I’ll prepare it for you right away. I’m just telling you though, I can’t do arrangements,” he warns.

“That’s totally fine. I just need six of each, no arrangements.”

Serim smiles and Woobin’s heartbeat quickens. He nods in understanding and turns to the flower racks behind him. He’s picking up six daisies and six lilies from the rack when he sees a single white flower beside the lilies. It was the last one—Gardenia—he takes it and wraps it along with the other flowers.

“Here you go. The daisies are 1,500won a piece and the lilies are 2000won. Your total comes to 21,000won.”

Serim counts the flowers and spots the single gardenia in the center, “I think you put this by mistake.”

Woobin smiles, “It’s on the house. It matches your outfit today, don’t you think so?”

“Thank you, Woobin.” he says with a shy smile and slightly pink cheeks after checking Woobin’s nametag.

Serim bids him goodbye after paying and Allen watches as his friend continues to smile at the door even when their customer already left. It doesn’t seem like he’s stopping soon so he clears his throat to grab the younger’s attention.

“You know that’s coming out of your paycheck, right? You can’t keep giving away flowers for free.”

“Sorry, I know. You can take it out from my pay. I can’t help it. He’s just… so beautiful.” Woobin sighs. There is just so much to admire about Serim.

“Ask for his phone number instead or your love life will never progress at this point.”

Woobin is on the phone when he hears the familiar sound of the wind chime, he sees Serim come in and their eyes met. Woobin smiles in acknowledgement and Serim returns it before Jungmo steals his attention away.

Serim arrives at the counter a few minutes later and gives Woobin a piece of paper, “Jungmo says to give this to you.”

Woobin scans the paper, “For someone’s birthday?” he asks.

“Yeah. Mom and I will be attending a birthday party and she asked me to pick up a bouquet,” Serim explains.

“Please wait a bit.”

Woobin goes to the back door and gives the order slip to Wonjin. He watches as Wonjin skillfully put together different types of flowers and making a beautiful bouquet out of it. He finishes in a jiffy and hands his creation to Woobin.

Woobin emerges from the back door and sees Serim on his phone. On his way to the counter, he sees a beautiful deep pink rose. It was the most vibrant among the bunch, so he takes it along with Serim’s order.

“Here you go, sorry for making you wait too long.”

Woobin hands him his order and Serim thanks him, stating he didn’t wait too long.

“Also, here’s for you. Sorry for the wait.” The cashier grins and gives Serim the vibrant pink rose.

“It’s totally fine! I didn’t wait long. Wow! This is beautiful, Woobin. Thank you so much.”

Woobin feels warmth envelope his body, admiring the sight of Serim’s precious smile. Serim pays for his order but before he leaves, he took something out from his body bag. It was a small baggie tied with a pink ribbon.

“For me?”

“They’re cookies. I helped my mom bake them last night,” he says, cheeks turning a little pink, “I just… Thank you for giving me free flowers. They’re really beautiful.”

Woobin breaks into a wide grin, “No worries! Thank you for thinking of me.”

Serim’s blush crept up to his ears and Woobin can’t help but squeal inside. How can someone be that cute? Serim is getting dangerous and it doesn’t seem too good for Woobin’s heart. He feels like his heart is about to burst. He’s falling in love.

Serim comes back the next day to purchase three potted orchids. Woobin says they can deliver potted plants with a fee but Serim informs him that his mom’s car is parked outside.

Serim pays by card this time. Jungmo and Wonjin offered to help Serim carry the pots outside. Serim is about to leave but the other stopped him.

Woobin gives him a single tulip, “For you.” He says.

Serim looks at him for a second before taking the beautiful flower, “You don’t have to keep giving me freebies, Woobin.”

“I know. But I want to.”

Serim smiles hesitantly and asks, “Do you always give out flowers to customers?”

Woobin was a little bit taken aback but he shakes his head, “No, just you.”

“Then, if you don’t mind me asking,” Serim looks into Woobin’s eyes and continues, “How did you decide on which flower to give me?”

Woobin is confused but he answered nonetheless, “I didn’t have any specific reasons when I chose the flowers. I just thought they’re really beautiful.”

“Oh.” Serim says and Woobin can see a flash of disappointment in his eyes.

“Did I say something wrong?” Woobin asks, worried.

“No. It’s nothing. I… I guess I’ll see you around?”

Serim bids him goodbye but Woobin can’t help but worry. Serim didn’t smile today. Well, he did but not his usual smile—it seemed forced and just weird. He isn’t sure if it was something he did, or it was something he said.

Unless…

Woobin buries his face in his hands, what if Serim had a boyfriend or a girlfriend already and thought that Woobin is an insensitive flirt?

“Stupid Woobin.” He mutters to himself.

A week goes by without seeing Serim and Woobin is going crazy. He can’t stop thinking about Serim and that flash of disappointment in his eyes from their last interaction. He was mopey all week and he even got a few orders mixed up. Luckily, they were in-store purchases, so it was easily corrected. However, Wonjin is not having any more of Woobin’s stupidity because he keeps taking over the register to correct the other’s mistakes.

“Hyung, what’s wrong?” Wonjin approaches him during lunch break, “We’re all worried about you. Besides, it’s not like you to make mistakes especially at the register. Is there anything bothering you at all? Is it perhaps… that Serim guy?”

Upon hearing Serim’s name, Woobin groans. He doesn’t want to worry his friends, but he feels sorry for making mistakes. Wonjin was right, he was being weird. Deciding he needs to talk about his worries, he tells Wonjin everything.

“So, you gave him a red amaryllis, a white gardenia, a deep pink rose and a tulip?”

Woobin nods in response. Wonjin sigh, closing his eyes for a moment before smacking Woobin’s arm.

“Ow! What was that for?!”

“How can you be so… so tactless hyung! Didn’t you know what the flowers meant?!”

“Why do you think I work at the register? If I knew anything about flowers, I’d be working with you!” Woobin huffs in frustration, “You’re the genius florist. Can you please tell me what I did wrong already? Because judging by your reaction, you definitely know something!”

Wonjin explains that the red amaryllis he gave Serim during their first meeting signifies splendid beauty. When he first saw Serim, he thinks the other was the most beautiful person he had ever laid his eyes on. How Woobin coincidentally gave him a flower that described how he feels was unbelievable to him.

The white gardenia he included along with the daisies and lilies Serim ordered signifies purity or sweetness. When he saw Serim wearing a white hoodie that day, he thought the same thing. How can he dress so plainly yet look so pure and beautiful at the same time?

The deep pink rose apparently shows gratitude and appreciation. Woobin thinks that the vibrant color of the flower reminded him of Serim’s contagious smile.

Finally, the tulip is a declaration of love. To say that Woobin was shocked when he hears this is an understatement. He was flabbergasted! Wonjin was right, he was so tactless! Serim probably thinks he’s playing with his feelings now. He probably misunderstood Woobin when he said he didn’t have a specific reason for giving flowers to Serim.

Woobin is speechless, he opens his mouth to say something, but he just cannot find the right words to say.

“I cannot believe you actually gave him flowers that matched what you felt without knowing their actual meanings. I am seriously amazed.” Wonjin says in disbelief.

“I’m so stupid! I’m so insensitive! He probably thinks I’m a stupid jerk who flirts with people on a daily! Wonjin, what do I do?”

“You better make things right the next time you see him. Just tell him how you really feel,” Wonjin pats Woobin’s shoulder to show support before he leaves him to think, “I’m pretty sure he will understand. He looks very kind. If he doesn’t, then I guess that’s what you get for not trying to learn the meanings of the flowers.”

Another three days passed without seeing Serim. His absence is really affecting Woobin. He regrets not asking Serim for his phone number. If he had done so, he would have asked him what went wrong right away. He feels absolutely dejected.

Somehow, the cheerful sound of the wind chimes every time a customer comes in sounds depressing to Woobin and it’s no different today. A few customers came to the shop early in the morning asking Jungmo for flowers that expresses deep affection. Jungmo recommends red roses and explains that it expresses a strong emotion, be it love or desire.

They sold a lot of red roses today. It’s not even Valentine’s Day, so why are so many people buying red roses? It’s not like he is complaining (read: yes he is), but why are people’s love life so successful and his is just so miserable?

After bidding farewell to the final customer, Woobin looks at the rack of red roses behind him. He thinks back to when he first met Serim; he thinks how his feelings developed so quickly from admiring his looks to wanting to know him better.

Serim never left Woobin’s mind. Every visit made the cashier curious about the other. In those short encounters, Serim smiles back and he blushes slightly and Woobin couldn’t help but feel giddy. He lets out another sigh, “Maybe I’m really in love,” he mutters.

“Order for Serim!”

Woobin quickly turns towards Wonjin’s voice, the sudden movement making him a little dizzy.

There aren’t any customers in the shop, so it was Jungmo who takes the bouquet from Wonjin and hands it to Woobin, “Your customer awaits,” his friend says, “talk to him properly this time.”

Woobin finally turns with the order on hand. There stands Serim—still as beautiful as the first time Woobin saw him. His ears are a little red and he was looking on the countertop. Woobin smiles involuntarily.

“Hello, Serim.”

“H-Hi. Uh—how much for the bouquet?” he asks.

Woobin wants to talk to him, ask him what he did wrong but Serim is obviously uncomfortable, the guy can’t even look at him. Woobin puts the flower down on the countertop in front of Serim, “It seems like our white roses are on special today. They’re 10,000won for a dozen. How would you like to pay?”

Serim takes the bouquet and hands Woobin his card, still avoiding the cashier’s gaze. Even when he’s not looking, Woobin thinks he’s still the most beautiful person ever.

As the receipt prints, Woobin looks back to the red roses behind him. With a determined mind, he takes a single rose and hands it to Serim.

Serim finally lifts his gaze, first eyeing the flower right in front of his face and then looking up to the cashier.

“Woobin, I—“Did you know that a red rose is associated with beauty and perfection?” Woobin cuts Serim off, his heart beating fast in his ribcage, “Did you know that it expresses a deep feeling? A deep emotion?” he continues, voice shaking a little.

Their eyes met for a mere second before Serim is back at looking to his feet.

“Please, accept this.”

Serim appears to be hesitant. Woobin is about to give up, but Serim takes the rose from him, “T-Thanks.”

“Serim, will you look at me please?”

Serim shakes his head.

“Then, will you listen?” Woobin asks again, but Serim remained quiet. He takes this as cue for him to continue talking, “First of all, I want to apologize. For being so… tactless. I really didn’t have any specific reason for choosing the flowers I gave you. I just thought they were really beautiful… like you.”

He stops for a bit, hoping for a reaction from Serim, but the other’s eyes were glued to the floor, so he continues.

“I actually don’t know anything about flowers, which is why I’m on cash duty. So, I couldn’t believe it when Wonjin explained their meanings to me. I was surprised and amazed because the flowers I chose definitely managed to express what I felt in those moments.”

“You don’t know the meanings of the flowers?!” Serim blurts out all of a sudden. When he realizes what he just did, his eyes turned as wide as saucers and his face flushed deep red.

Woobin is surprised, but he nodded. He looks to his feet, suddenly feeling even more nervous, “I don’t. But, even if I knew, I would have given you the same flowers—I wouldn’t change anything,” he sighs, trying to calm his nervous heart, “I admired you the moment I laid my eyes on you. Oh God, I feel like I just sounded like a creep—believe me, I’m not, but when I think about it, when I see you, I feel happy. Your smile is contagious and it reminds me of these beautiful flowers I’m surrounded by. Vibrant and cheerful. I don’t know anything about you, and I don’t know if what I’m feeling is love but I’m absolutely certain that I have never felt this strong towards someone before. So, if you’d let me, I want to know you more and see where this takes us.”

Unbeknownst Woobin, Serim is already looking at him with a small smile, “I would like that, actually.”

Serim said it with such a small voice, but Woobin was able to hear it as clear as day. He finally looks up and his eyes focus on Serim’s face. His smile is back and his face is flushed—he’s as beautiful as Woobin remembered, if not, even more beautiful.

“You do?” Woobin asks in anticipation.

“Will you listen to me too?” Serim asks and Woobin nodded so quickly, the other let out a short laugh.

“I actually don’t know anything about flowers either. But the flowers you gave me were so random, I got curious. I searched them up and found out their meanings. I thought you were just flirting, but then you never asked for my number. I got even more curious about you. But when I asked you why you gave me those flowers, you just said there’s no reason, so I thought you were playing with me. I wasn’t going to come here today, you know.”

Woobin becomes sad at the thought, but his frown disappears right away when Serim continues.

“But I really want to know you more too…”

They both look at each other’s eyes filled with happiness and admiration. It’s as if time and space stopped for them; It’s as if all the stars and comets turn into one big matter and explodes right between the two of them.

“These are for you too,” Serim says and hands the bouquet of white roses to the other with shaking hands.

Woobin was delighted. He accepted the bouquet without hesitation and gently hugged it to his chest as if it was the most important thing in the world.

“Apparently, white roses are associated with new beginnings and… I want a new beginning with you, Woobin.”

“So do I, Serim. Shall we start over?”

Serim nodded and introduced himself, “Hello! My name is Park Serim.”

Woobin grins and took Serim’s outstretched hand, “Nice to meet you, Serim. My name is Seo Woobin. Would you like to go for a coffee date with me?”

Serim grins back, “I’d love to.”


End file.
